Street Performance World Championships

I was delighted to get invited to last night's Street Performance World Championships Corporate Evening, hosted by Emergent Events, in The Sugar Club. Going on last night (Tuesday 14 July) and tonight (Wednesday 15 July), the event is a corporate showcase and networking event to show off some the best street performers in the world.

The guys at Emergent Events are the official agents for some of the SPWC's best performers; including Beautiful Stu; Senmaru; Charlie Caper (winner of Sweden's Got Talent); Grant GoldieJack Wise and the world renowned Space Cowboy.

Mark, Conor and Dan are the gents in question, and I highly recommend that anyone hosting a corporate event of any kind gives them a call.

Check out the following videos as a taste of what we enjoyed...

Plaid Nation Tour 2009

I can't believe it's been a year since I posted about the Plaid Nation Tour (2008). But sure enough it has been and the guys will soon be back on the road doing what they love doing. I got an email from R.J. just there at the beginning of July to remind me the tour was fast approaching and to ask me to send him my details so he could post on the annual Plaid Nation Swag Bag.

Well today, as I sat there getting ready to start the working week, a nice little envelope dropped on my desk. As soon as I saw the address label I tore it open...




So for those not in the know, what is Plaid Nation and what is the Plaid Nation Tour?
PlaidNation describes itself as a "rolling celebration of creativity and a demonstration of social media in action". Picture an agency taking to the road in their fully customised, social media optimised, technology enabled Ford Flex, driving around the states to meet up with as many creative, marketing, brand and internet folk as they can. Their aim - to engage, interact and celebrating all the innovative things that Social Media has to offer. What's particularly cool is that the whole thing will be brought straight to your pc as a 'kind of' reality show (but better, they promise).

So what does it all mean and why should you be interested in it?
This is a seriously cool opportunity to connect and engage with the latest social media tools, the cutting edge of modern marketing, without so much Tweeting a Tweet or Commenting a Blog. Plaid will dish out their learnings and insights about how and why the world's biggest brands are using Social Media. In this wonder-tour the Plaid Flex will be visiting (and driving between) Detroit, Milwaukee, Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Kansas City, Branson, Memphis, Jackson and New Orleans. Though don't fear if you're a West Coaster, or don't even live in the US, as they also actively reach out to the International Interweb community (they found me!) to share what they learn from all the marketing, brand and creative people they meet.

In case I'm doing a poor job of conveying the coolness of all this, check out their video...



Plaid Links:
Plaid
Plaid Nation
About the Plaid Nation Tour
Plaid Nation Downloads
The Plaid Nation Blog
Plaid on Twitter
Plaid on Facebook

iPhone Music Video

The iPhone has innovated many things in our lives - where you access your email, how you interact with the world (opening up access to Scoail Networks etc.) and completely revolutionising the idea of mobile applications. So the question is, is there anything left for the iPhone to conquere?

Well apparently there is. With the release of the iPhone 3GS (which allows 30sec video capture) there has been a momumental increase of UGC video content online, and in particular on YouTube (400% per day since launch according to YouTube). Mostly it's the regular kind of stuff you'd expect - parties and other social occasions, sporting events etc. However a group of filmmakers at Showdown Productions LLC have gone a step further. They recently completed the first music video shot entirely on an iPhone.

It may not have the creative flair seen with the most recent Fight Like Apes video, but it's worth a look.



Source: PSFK and Claire

Augmented Reality: ID

These is one of the funkiest uses of Augmented Reality that I've come across. Imagine being able to combine all your Social Media profiles into a single "profile" that is, you. Pick and choose what information you want displayed based on what you're doing - in work, out at a club, whatever.

This is exactly what the guys at The Astonishing Tribe are currently working on. Following on from some brilliant stuff like their G1 user interface and impressive 3D eye-tracking concept, they are now in full swing to get the Augmented ID up and running. The augmented reality app will utilise facial recognition software to allow people to view your profile around you. By simply viewing someone through the app on your phone you will be shown their pre-selected info and social networking links hovering around them.

Facebook Fan Box

Last Monday Facebook launched Facebook Fan Box. This handy little widget allows you to bring your Facebook page out of Facebook and onto your website. Instead of the usual 'Follow Us' link or button, you can now stream your Facebook activity straight to your site. This will include your most recent posts, a list of your fans, and, perhaps most conveniently, a button to become a fan without having to go anywhere else.

Fan Box utilises Facebook Connect and is extremely simple to add. Just go to your Facebook page, immediately below your page's profile picture you will see a new button. One click and a handy creation wizard will launch.

The main advantages of implementing the widget are to allow fan recruitment in a more direct and engaging way directly from your site, while remaining in complete control of the content provided (content can be customised by the administrator). However the biggest advantage is that anyone has access to the embed code, and can add a Fan Box to their own site. The potential for pushing out content to the net is dramatically increased. There's also a knock-on effect of increasing linking, and therefore increasing page rank potential.

Good examples of pages using the Fan Box include:

• Threadless
  
• Coca-Cola
• World Wildlife Fund
• Lance Armstrong/Livestrong
• Kings of Leon